Mine roof support



Feb. 6, 1934. E RAMSAY 1,946,034

MINE ROOF SUPPORT 34 I MMM mlllllllll IIHM /IIEHIEIHE/l/E/l/E/Z:W7 l//E/l/ /1/7E/HE/l/E/HE 1 z 14 357 15 25 M A 23 23 25 \\\\\\\\\\\\\;-w-\\\\\\\\\\IHHHL MjHHHIHlI/I r l 13 29 'M17 16 13 7f3/14n@ Ramsay ATTORNEYS Feb. s, 1934.

Filed June 26. 1931 E. RAMSAY MINE ROOF SUPPORT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 /f/E//lf/z/E/l/E/l/E/NEN/ENE H/ I l I l I 1 l l I i l i l ATTORNEY, l

Patented Feb. 6, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Claims.

My invention relates to mine roof supports, and is particularly concerned with devising a rugged structure capable of affording a powerful support v for the roof and yet adapted to be readily ad- 4 and leave behind a worked-out area in which the roof is unsupported and is permitted to break and fall intermittently and progressively, with the limit of the break and fall controlled by the position and advance of the roof supports.

My invention comprises an assembled roof support comprising a base shoe, a top shoe and interposed divergent relatively adjustable brace or prop members which, responsive to adjustment, will force the support to its working position or release it for change in position.

More particularly, my invention contemplates using elongated metallic top and bottom shoes with interposed structural braces or props having their lower ends adjustably mounted on the bottom shoe with the adjustment controlled by powerful means such as a screw which is in convenient position for manipulation to set and release the support.

My invention also contemplates the providing of adjustable brace means connecting the props so that by tightening these braces the whole structure becomes rigid and can be readily moved as a rigid structure without having to be taken down and reassembled.

My invention further contemplates elongating the top and bottom support and setting the pair of relatively adjustable brace members with their divergent ends uppermost, thereby enabling the use of long top members which when first set, overhang close to the face of the coal and increase the roof area over the work space that they will directly support, whereby I provide ample room and safety thereunder for the miners along the face being worked. The bottom members are shorter thus giving floor or working space for the miners.

My invention further contemplates setting the top and base members or shoes to converge rearwardly from the face being mined, whereby roof pressure thereon will tend to force the support structure toward the face and will make it easy with the power means to move it up to the face.

My invention further contemplates where desirable interposing between the top shoe and the roof a plurality of transversely disposed timbers, preferably old mine timbers, such as props, cross ties and the like, which can be made to conform to the roof and which will extend laterally, while allowing the downward pitch desired for the top shoe, so as to afford almost continuous roof protection for the men along the face working thereunder.

My invention further comprises the novel details of construction and arrangements of parts, which in their preferred embodiment only are illustrated in the accompanying drawings which form a part of this specification, and in which;-

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of my improved roof support shown in position and associated with heading, room and long wall mining operations carried out at the adjacent face of the mineral. being worked;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view partly in cross section showing the screw adjustment for the roof support members;

Fig. 3 is an end view of the supports in operating position; and

Fig. 4 is a plan view showing the staggered relation of these supports to the face being mined. Of course they can be staggered or not as the roof conditions require.

Similar reference numerals refer to similar parts throughout the drawings.` y

In the embodiment of my invention illustrated, I show my improved mine roof support coacting with a. mine floor 5, a working face of the mineral 6 and a roof area '7 to be supported. Each support embodies an elongated bottom shoe 8 formed of a channel iron 9, a pair of angle irons 10, and a plate 11. The channel and angle irons may be secured to the plate by any suitable means. The bottom shoe is provided with an upturned end 12 to enable it to be more readily dragged forward in changing its position in the mine. Preferably the shoe is placed on gob or refuse material 13 so that it will seat itself throughout regardless of irregularities in the floor surface, with a pitch downwardly to the face. I provide each support with a plurality of upwardly divergent braces, only two being shown. 'Ihe brace nearest the working face 6 is indicated at 14 and i's preferably formed by an H-beam, and the rear brace adjacent to the worked-out'area is indicated at 15, and may be formed of a heavier H- beam as it is subjected to greater load strains, due to the subsidence of the roof adjacent thereto.

The flanges of these beams are cut away at their lower ends, as shown in Fig. 2, and their centers or webs 16 rest upon the shoe 8. Each brace is adjustable both angularly and longitudinally on the bottom shoe by having a connecting pin or bolt 17 inserted through one pair of brace webs and engaged loosely in horizontally elongated slots 18 formed in the flanges of the base channel 9 and angle irons 10. The anges of the H-beams are bevelled to permit them to assume different angular positions relative to the shoe and thus to accommodate the support or prop to different roof elevations.

At their upper ends the structural bracesor props 14 and 15 are pivotally connected at 19 to the top shoe 20 to avoid taking the assembled member apart, which is also elongated and formed by a top channel member 21, a pair; of angle irons 22, and a top plate 23. This top shoe extends forwardly to overhang the front brace and afford a cantilever to support the roof up to the face when the unit is moved up while the front brace or prop leaves ample working room between it and the face 6 and affords protection to the miner against falls of roof.

Plates 11 and 23 are used ,onlyV if as and when the roof conditions require same. The length of timbers 24 is determined also by the particular roof conditions. l

Transversely disposed timbers 24 formed of old mine timbers, cross tie timbers or the like, are interposed between the top shoe 20 and the roof and extend laterally to increase the roof area directly supported thereby.v v v `To set the brace or prop to its work and to release it for advancementto a new working position, I provide a powerful screw jack as the preierredl means to spread apart or contractY the lower ends of braces i4 and 15. As shown in Fig. 2, this adjusting means comprises a jackscrew having a center head 25 with a loose turning llever or arm 25a slidable therethrough. The screw has its oppositely extended ends 2,6 reversely threaded and adapted to be inserted through elongated openings27 in the webs 14 of the braces of each support. A pair of nuts 28 are screwed on each of the screws 26 so as to engage on oppositeV sides of the webs 16 of the braces to be adjusted by such screw, and each of these nuts has lugs 29 which will engage in the opening k27 and prevent the rotation of the nut when the screw is turned to force the lower ends of a pair -of braces 14 and'15 apart or to draw theml together.

There is overhung from the end of the top shoe adjacent to the working face 6, a bracket 30 carrying a horizontal support 31 for arope or cable 32 that is applied to the mining tool 33 to facilitate its manipulation by the miner. Other mining tools can be used.

As the coal is mined it falls on a conveyor system generally indicated at 34 but not described as it forms no part of rny present invention.

In Fig. 4 the top shoes only are indicated and the dotted lines show their advance in staggered order as Vthey follow the receding working face 6, but it will be understood that they may alll be advanced in line in any standard order.

In order to brace the structure together so that it may be made rigid I provide suitable diagonal braces 35 which connect the braces 14 and 15, as shown in Fig. l., and in each brace I provide a suitable means such as a turn buckle 36. After the device has been assembled, by tightening up on these braces it can be made rigid as a whole to facilitate the movement of the device and its ready adjustment to different operating position in the mine.

In operation, having assembled the roof supports in the manner described and drawn them to the desired position in the mine and, having prepared the loose material bed 13, the whole device as a unit, without being taken apart is drawn by suitable power unit (not shown) on to this bed and the handle 25a is manipulated to turn the jack screw so as to spread the brace or prop members apart at their bottom. This forces the top shoe with or without the timbers thereon upwardly until it firmly supports the roof and where desired timbers, wedges or ller pieces may be driven in the cause them to more or less uniformly engage and support the roof and provide some give just as the gob does.

VVery powerful pressure can be applied through the jack screw and yet the support can be set in working position and quickly released for adjustmentY and While in position it will afford a powerful roof support effective over an extended area normal to the working face, which can be reduced in height or made wedge-shaped toward the worked-out area where the breaking away and subsidence of the roof will impose the greatest strainson the supports and might but for this wedging action make it difficult to free the supportl and advance it. Further, by having the brace or prop member 14 adjacent the working face disposed to diverge rearwardly from the working face I provide a greater clearance there for miners working space and for interposition of a mining and conveyor system.

Though I have described with great particularity the details of the embodiment ofthe Vinvention herein shown, it is not to be construed that I am limited thereto, as changes in arrangement and substitution 'of equivalents may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the invention as defined in the appended claims.

. What I claim is:-

1. An adjustable mine roof prop comprising in combination an elongated base shoe having upwardly divergent prop elements resting 'thereon and adjustable longitudinally thereof, a screw means to draw the lower ends of said prop elements together or force them apart, and an elongated top shoe to which the prop elements are pivotally connected with an end thereof overhung beyond the prop element adjacent to the mine face being worked,

2. A mine prop or" the character described in claim 1, in which the bottom shoe is substantially shorter than theV top shoe, leaving the top shoe overhanging substantially beyond the bottom shoe to support the mine roof above the clear working space between the prop elements and the working face.

. 3. A mine prop according to claim 1, in which the overhung end of the top shoe carries a iiexible support for a mining machine.

4. A mineV prop according to claim 1, in which the screw for adjusting the prop elements is disposed above the lower shoe, and adjustable diagonal brace elements are interposed between the extending its roof supporting area laterally throughout its length.

ERSKINE RAMSAY. 

